Sara Topelson de Grinberg studied architecture at the Faculty of Architecture of the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM). She has developed projects in the areas of housing, education, industry, trade and residential, through the architecture bureau Grinberg y Topelson Arquitectos. From 1996 to 1999, she was the first female president of the International Union of Architects (UIA). She’s an Emeritus Academic of the National Architecture Academy and the Mexican Architecture Academy.

In 1998, she was honored as knight of the Order of Arts and Letters of France. Her distinguished professional performance and her commitment to architecture have earned her numerous awards and recognitions, among them Woman of the Year in Mexico in 1996, the Award of the Mexico-Israel Cultural Institute in 1999, and the Mario Pani medal of CAM-SAM in 2003, for her contribution to the dissemination of architecture.

From 2000 to 2003, Sara Topelson de Grinberg was Director of Architecture and Conservation of Art Estate Treasures at the Instituto Nacional de Bellas Artes (INBA), where she encouraged the publication of 15 books on issues relating to architecture, 13 exhibitions at the National Museum of Architecture and the continued enlargement of the catalogue on estates with artistic value. She is currently the Undersecretary of Urban Development and Territorial Planning at the Ministry for Social Development (SEDESOL).